12
Vineyards dried up, fig trees withered, Pomegranates, date palms, and apple trees - deadwood everywhere! And joy is dried up and withered in the hearts of the people. Nothing's Going On in the Place of Worship

13
And also you priests, put on your robes and join the outcry. You who lead people in worship, lead them in lament. Spend the night dressed in gunnysacks, you servants of my God. Nothing's going on in the place of worship, no offerings, no prayers - nothing.

14
Declare a holy fast, call a special meeting, get the leaders together, Round up everyone in the country. Get them into God's Sanctuary for serious prayer to God.

15
What a day! Doomsday! God's Judgment Day has come. The Strong God has arrived. This is serious business!

16
Food is just a memory at our tables, as are joy and singing from God's Sanctuary.

17
The seeds in the field are dead, barns deserted, Grain silos abandoned. Who needs them? The crops have failed!

18
The farm animals groan - oh, how they groan! The cattle mill around. There's nothing for them to eat. Not even the sheep find anything.

19
God! I pray, I cry out to you! The fields are burning up, The country is a dust bowl, forest and prairie fires rage unchecked.

20
Wild animals, dying of thirst, look to you for a drink. Springs and streams are dried up. The whole country is burning up.

Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.
(The Message Bible Online)